Electrical Terminology Flashcards
A material opposes current flow
Resistor
The flow of electrons from an electron source (through wires)
Electrical current
A device that stores electrical energy
Capacitor
Opposition of biological tissues to the flow of electrical current
impedance
Flow of current in one direction (negative or positive)
Direct current
Flow of current first in one direction then in the other (bidirectional)
alternating current
Synonymous with alternating current
Biphasic
Current flow in one direction
Phase
synonymous with direct current
Monophasic
Time period from beginning to end of one phase (leave isoelectric line until it returns)
phase duration
Time between phases (interphase interval)
Interphase duration
Time from isoelectric line until maximum amplitude
phase rise time
time from maximum amplitude until back at isoelectric line
phase decay time
Equal to phase duration for DC current and 2x phase duration for AC current
pulse duration
Series of successive pulses or cycles over a period of time
burst
Time between beginning of 1st and end of last cycle or pulse
burst duration
time between two successive bursts
interburst duration
The resulting current waveform when 2 or more sinusoidal waves intersect (interfere) with each other
beat
Number of times per second that a pulse, cycle, burst, or beat occurs
Frequency
Magnitude of current relative to the isoelectric line measured in amperes (Amps, A).Usually in micro to miliamperes. Can be peak, peak-to-peak, average, or root mean square
amplitude
continuous series of pulses, cycles, bursts or beats over time(usually seconds)
Train
Ratio of on to off time expressed as a percentage
Duty cycle
Time period where current amplitude is increasing from zero to maximum
Ramp up
Time period where current amplitude is decreasing from maximum to zero
Ramp down
Changes in amplitude, pulse duration, pulse frequency, or a combination of these to prevent nerve accommodation to stimulation
modulation
